A collection of various items including a card with an illustration of a young woman with orange hair and a library background, books, a candle with a bee illustration, and a coffee mug on a shelf.

A storybook Brought to Life…

Do you remember the first time that you opened a pop-up book as a child? The sense of awe and wonder that you felt?

You knew that it was only paper, but there was something magical about it.

Something more captivating than even the fantastic two-dimensional illustrations that appeared in your favorite children’s books. Something more…real.

“Like a Spell Cast in Paper”

As a child, I couldn’t comprehend why paper dolls and pop-up books captivated me so much, but as an adult (and now an illustrator of nearly 15 years) I think I understand.

Our eyes were not made for flat screens and flat imagery; they were made for things that reflect light and shadow.

Things that have depth.

Things that change color and deepen as the sun goes down, and take on a new power at night.

It’s what captivates us. It’s why pop-up books and dioramas were so enthralling to us as little children. Why we could stare at them for hours, and poke and tug gently at their little pieces.

It was like a spell cast in paper.

Like gazing into a tiny world.

A cutout illustration of a flower placed on a page of printed text.
Sticker of a honey bee on a book page.
Colorful sticker of a woman with long red hair, pointing with her right hand, placed over a page of text.
Colorful cutout artwork featuring a woman with blue hair, surrounded by various botanical elements and animals, including a duck and swan, with a nature scene in the background.

At some point in our lives we decide to put away “childish” things, but our eyes and our hearts never forget.

Introducing: Story Boxes

A decorative display featuring a framed artwork of a woman with long, flowing hair, sitting with her knees drawn up, surrounded by a starry night sky, with a star-shaped ornament hanging from the top right corner of the frame.
A shadow box with vintage newspaper clippings on the sides and a scene with a woman with red hair sitting on a chair, wearing a green dress, in the center. The shadow box is titled 'The Cleaning Ritual' at the bottom.
Colorized illustration of a bird with translucent wings, cracked texture, and a long beak, facing right.
A colorful board game with a woman with pink hair, a flower, clouds, and decorative border design. The text on the game board reads 'MAKE A WISH.'

Storyboxes bring the depth and magic of pop-up books and dioramas into your adult home in the form of unique, three-dimensional artwork that gives your living space whimsy and wonder.

They can be displayed on shelves, tables, desks or countertops, but can also be hung on the wall, like tiny doorways into fantastical worlds.

A room decorated with string lights, artificial flowers, and anime posters. A mirror is mounted on the wall, reflecting part of the room, and there is a black chair in the foreground.
"Chasing Icarus", a colorful and whimsical 3D storybox from artist Anthony Christopher Robinson depicting a beautiful woman sailing upwards towards the sun on feathered wings, is displayed on a table with various decorative items.

←(Note: Your “Doorways” don’t have to be as cluttered as mine! )

“Storyboxes React to changes in light”

Unlike a traditional print or poster, Storyboxes can evoke a completely different mood based on how the light interacts with them. Placing them in different parts of the room can give a different effect.

This is because Storyboxes react to changes in the light. Their three-dimensional design and overlapping layers allow the strong beams of the sun or the warm glow of a lamp to stream over and through them, creating vibrant hot spots and deep shadows.

A Storybox that is compromised of cool tones such as blue and green can become warm and smoldering during a sunset (like our fastidious cleaning witch here!)

A shelf displaying a vintage-style illustrated card titled 'The Cleaning Ritual' with a woman in a green skirt and white blouse holding a mop. Surrounding the card are boxes and other decorative items, including a mug and a plant.
Decorative paper lantern with anime-style illustration of a woman, surrounded by vintage advertisements and product packaging, on a wall.

Or become more sepia and muted, like our entangled muse of the moon…

"Lunar Entanglement", a 3D Storybox by artist Anthony Christopher Robinson, featuring a vintage-style woman draped in white sitting in the crescent moon in the sky. The background has string lights creating a cozy atmosphere.

Would you like to see how a storybox could change your home?

An illustration of a woman with large wings, long wavy hair, and a crown, sitting with her eyes closed, while a girl with long red hair and glasses reads a book underneath her.

Tell me about how these are made!

A digital illustration of a bird with a cracked, bright blue and green body, showing detailed wing and feather structure.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Anthony Christopher Robinson started off work as a digital colorist for comic books and animated films, until the comic book industry crashed and then a little known company named “Pixar” ended the reign of 2D animation in America seemingly forever.

Since then, he has worked a myriad of non-art careers, while slowing developing his love of illustration, color theory and fashion on the side.

From commission work for Activision, to logo and manual design for the medical industry, and even branded merchandise for a large, Midwestern coffee house, Anthony Christopher has had a diverse art career, but he never forgot his childhood love of pop-up books, dioramas, and those little street displays that Disneyland used to have nestled in the windows on Main Street.

This website and this store is my own little Main Street display, now, and my own book corner in the library.

And I hope that it will enchant you and bring you even a fraction of the sense of wonder that I used to feel as a child, peering in the frosted windows at the tiny figures, or turning the pages of a ruffled old pop-up book.

But I know of course that’s impossible.

I could never even hope to replace that experience.

I just hope that you enjoy your time here and are inspired.

Gratefully Yours,

Anthony Christopher Robinson

Son of the Robin

Illustration of a bird with transparent wings and body filled with a map-like pattern, in shades of blue and green.
A cozy room decorated with wall art, fairy lights, a mirror, a small bookshelf, and a wooden chair in the foreground.
A gold and black illustration by artist Anthony Christopher Robinson of a medieval princess in a mirrored, playing-card style. She holds a sword in her right hand with a falcon perched on her arm, and is surrounded by an intricate gold border.